There's a Disconnect in Conservative Thinking On Wages

Tuesday

Dec 11, 2012 at 12:21 AM

There is solid evidence to show that conservative thinking has worsened the economy. A case in point is the demand from the right to cut spending on social programs but leave the wealthy's taxes low. Most conservative leaders say government should leave the job creators alone, yet none have pressured them to pay a living wage to their employees.

There is solid evidence to show that conservative thinking has worsened the economy. A case in point is the demand from the right to cut spending on social programs but leave the wealthy's taxes low. Most conservative leaders say government should leave the job creators alone, yet none have pressured them to pay a living wage to their employees.

There is a disconnect in their thinking. Paying a living wage increases consumption, which in turn increases production. The additional amount in wages paid is actually an investment, which would return benefits across the whole economy.

Conservative critics blame educators for not preparing workers for the 3 million open positions that now wait for skilled people to fill them, yet a recent Manpower survey found that, among U.S. employers having difficulty filling jobs, 54 percent report the reason is that workers are looking for more pay than is offered, and 44 percent report that applicants lack experience. It turns out, lack of skills is not as big a problem as lack of pay.

It is not too much to ask companies to pay a living rate for labor or to train qualified prospects to do the job required, yet many companies in America expect to routinely hire qualified people at unlivable pay scales. Employing Americans is laudable, but not if they insist on paying Chinese wages.

Perhaps they have adopted this strategy because hundreds of people line up to apply for each job opening, but we will not start to move toward full recovery until workers can earn a living wage.

It is much better to have the private sector lead the way in the economic recovery, but until they step up, it must fall to government to be the one to help families on the edge.